If you think the only thing Britain has to offer hip-hop is a bunch of arenas for the likes of Eminem and other Americans to fill when they make the short trip across the Atlantic, then it's time to listen to Rodney Hylton Smith and reconsider.

Nobody would ever buy a record by Rodney Hylton Smith, so wisely Rod's adopted the stage name of Roots Manuva, a great moniker which rustles up images of beefy rhythm and sharp rhymes. On his second album, "Run Come Save Me," that is exactly what you get. And plenty more.

There's not one duff track here, but more importantly there are at least half a dozen classics. "Run Come Save Me" is even better than 1999's debut album, "Brand New Second Hand." It is, in one word, a masterpiece. You won't hear better hip-hop than the anthemic single "Witness (One Hope)" and the buzzing freestyling of "Stone the Crows" all year, I swear.

Son of a Jamaican preacher, Rod quit Sunday school for sound systems at the first opportunity, and the reggae he secretly listened to when his folks were praising the Lord has hugely influenced his sound and vocal delivery. Roots Manuva might be filed under hip-hop, but much of the rythym is bouncing straight out of a Kingston dance hall after being soaked in the sweet heavy aroma of top-grade skunk, one of Rod's few vices.

But reggae isn't the only influence here. The warped melancholic strings on tracks like "Kicking the Cack" gives the music a dark, menacing, trip-hoppy feel, like it's just slipped out of Tricky's psyche to find an equally shadowy, if more melodic home.

But Rod's religious parents needn't worry too much about their young son embracing the devil's music. Unlike most of his American hip-hop cousins, he minds his language, his bad language that is, and generally opts for "frig" over "f**k" when he feels it necessary to swear, which isn't often.

And Roots Manuva is not a gangsta. He seems to be happier rapping about his favorite foods -- hashcakes and, erm, cheese on toast -- than dissing women, gays or rival artists.

On the final track, "Dreamy Days," a beautiful slice of soothing soul, Rod promises, "there's gonna be fun and lots of laughter"; one thing is for certain, listening to this will put more than a smile on your face, it'll have you writhing on the floor in ecstasy. Buy this album. Now.